STL Tutorial and Reference Guide: C++ Programming with the Standard Template Library (2nd Edition) (C++ in Depth Series)

"The second edition is clearer and adds more examples on how to use STL in a practical environment. Moreover, it is more concerned with performance and tools for its measurement. Both changes are very welcome."
--Lawrence Rauchwerger, Texas A&M University

"So many algorithms, so little time! The generic algorithms chapter with so many more examples than in the previous edition is delightful! The examples work cumulatively to give a sense of comfortable competence with the algorithms, containers, and iterators used."
--Max A. Lebow, Software Engineer, Unisys Corporation

The STL Tutorial and Reference Guide is highly acclaimed as the most accessible, comprehensive, and practical introduction to the Standard Template Library (STL). Encompassing a set of C++ generic data structures and algorithms, STL provides reusable, interchangeable components adaptable to many different uses without sacrificing efficiency. Written by authors who have been instrumental in the creation and practical application of STL, STL Tutorial and Reference Guide, Second Edition includes a tutorial, a thorough description of each element of the library, numerous sample applications, and a comprehensive reference.

You will find in-depth explanations of iterators, generic algorithms, containers, function objects, and much more. Several larger, non-trivial applications demonstrate how to put STL's power and flexibility to work. This book will also show you how to integrate STL with object-oriented programming techniques. In addition, the comprehensive and detailed STL reference guide will be a constant and convenient companion as you learn to work with the library.

This second edition is fully updated to reflect all of the changes made to STL for the final ANSI/ISO C++ language standard. It has been expanded with new chapters and appendices. Many new code examples throughout the book illustrate individual concepts and techniques, while larger sample programs demonstrate the use of the STL in real-world C++ software development. An accompanying Web site, including source code and examples referenced in the text, can be found at http://www.cs.rpi.edu/~musser/stl-book/index.html.

Additionally, both the index and the overall organization of the book leave much to be desired.

The book, however, is a valuable reference for beginning and intermediate programmers. It explains the STL (Standard Template Library) from the ground up, explaining when, where, and why you would use any particular aspect of the STL, how to use the STL, and sufficient examples to understand correct syntax. This book also contains a detailed section of applying the STL to real-life programming examples. Furthermore, the book also contains a comprehensive reference guide for quick and easy access to pertinent information about STL aspects you frequently use and modestly comprehend.

If you are a beginning or intermediate programmer, this book is worth adding to your collection.


Tutorial and Reference Worth Having   January 8, 2002
Max A. Lebow (Philadelphia, PA United States)
15 out of 17 found this review helpful

This volume is a much improved version of the original of the same title. An additional author has come aboard. The major improvements I noticed were in the examples. There are many more examples and many more STL features now have examples showing how you can use them.

The tutorial aspect of this book, which comprises the first part of the book, makes a strong case for not re-inventing the wheel, but rather using the containers, iterators and algorithms in the standard library. Practical examples come right from the start. This may take some getting used to by those who have never seen STL used before, however, the excitement is tonic.

Also, the approach, of showing STL use before getting into the theories of iterator-based access, has been adopted in several subsequent C++ texts by teachers of C++ and has been found pedagogically sound.

Don't overlook the precision and clarity of the (English) language discussion of the STL in the tutorial. It's worth reading every so often as a refresher.

And the value of the reference section, which is easy to navigate and has everything in it that most other books dealing with STL don't is great indeed.

On the whole, if you work in C++, this is a carefully put-together book that will have lasting value and continual use in your library.


Useful, but not Handy   November 25, 2001
Mike Blaszczak (Mercer Island, WA, USA)
28 out of 31 found this review helpful

John's reviews are interesting. While I agree with many of the points he makes, I disagree with some. And I found a few to be self-contradictory.

He says, for instance, that "This is a good solid book that will get you up to speed quickly on all the important ideas in STL, and many of its basic usage idioms", but then naievely claims that "there aren't any higher level ideas than those presented here". Does the book cover only basic concepts, or is it that if the book doesn't cover it, it is not knowledge?

The book is full of concrete examples. But my problem was that they were trivial. Reversing or sorting or finding characters within a string is great fun. But it doesn't help me understand who owns the memory within a container. Or how to directly and safely reference an element at an arbitrary position within a container outside of an iteration loop. A majority of the examples use trivial intrinsic datatypes for contained elements; how is using a struct or class different?

All of those issues are important aspects of using the library, and not something I think a busy reader should leave to "a little imagination". While most of the disputed facts are eventually available in the text, they're not easy to find. The organization of the book isn't quite intuitive enough to make it a thoughtful reference or a breezy tutorial.

And, in many cases, once found, they're not clear. John cited page 151 for an explanation of the differences between some of the collections. There, it says "With maps an multimaps, the data items are pairs of keys and data of some other type..." What's that mean? Two keys and data of some other type? Or a key and data of some other type? Does "pairs" mean "two", or an instance of the "pairs" utility class?

The book really is missing information. None of the examples do any error checking whatsoever, and the exceptions that the templates throw aren't described. (Maybe, like priority queues, error handling was formalized after the book went to press. It is showing its age, and there's now a 2nd edition. I haven't purchased it.)

It's ambitious to write a book that tries to serve as both a tutorial and the reference. (Me, I think it's just impossible.) This book does very well, but falls short of adequately completing either goal.

I think that there's a bias against this book because it doesn't fit well with the way these reviewers would have liked to learn the subject at hand. I know that's where I landed. While true masters do indeed make it look simple, making it look simple doesn't help learning. Otherwise, we could all watch Tiger Woods for a few Sundays before taking home a Buick and a six-figure check.